Healthcare

“The House Republican proposal to destroy Medicare is a feeding frenzy for the insurance industry sharks, and every American that has ever hoped to retire with dignity is what’s for dinner. The hundreds of billions of dollars in Medicare Americans previously set aside in preparation for our golden years is now being set aside for insurance industry profits."

I support repealing the new 1099 reporting requirements. They are an onerous and unnecessary burden on small businesses. My Republican colleagues could have crafted a workable bipartisan bill with almost unanimous support. Instead, House Republicans forced Congress to make a poisonous choice today: vote No and maintain the paperwork burden on small businesses or vote Yes and increase taxes on small businesses and working men and women. I voted No and urged my Republican colleagues to rewrite the bill.

"We need to Make It In America to create good American jobs. Instead, the House Republican spending bill, H.R. 1, makes reckless cuts to education, transportation, research, public safety, women's health services, and national security," said Congressman Garamendi. "I urge the President and Senate to reject this dangerous proposal, and I urge every member of Congress to serve the people they represent. We should be creating jobs and fixing our economy, but the House Republican spending bill destroys at least 800,000 jobs."

The House Republican continuing resolution cuts threaten to stifle job creation by gutting key investments. Instead of moving America forward, the GOP budget proposal would put this country in reverse. Under the House Republican plan, more than 200,000 children would be kicked out of Head Start and thousands of teachers would lose their jobs; 20,000 fewer researchers would be supported at the National Science Foundation, stifling the innovative research that creates next generation jobs; 25,000 new construction jobs would be lost and 76 projects in 40 states would be cancelled; there would be 1,330 fewer cops on the beat and 2,400 fewer firefighters on the job; AmeriCorps' effective services to our country would be eliminated; and needed food programs like WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) would be decimated.

Garamendi added, "House Republicans want to decimate water cleanup, making your tap water more toxic. They want to drastically cut funding to the FBI and U.S. Marshals, making our streets less safe. They want to cut billions from clean energy production and research, eliminating hundreds of thousands of jobs, making America less competitive, and endangering national security by continuing our dangerous addiction to foreign oil. They want to close national parks and layoff park rangers, possibly making your favorite vacation spot a haven for criminals. Every American is harmed by this destructive and foolish plan."

"If you are in the market for health insurance today, because of the Patient’s Bill of Rights, you are now protected by the strongest consumer protections in American history – protections now law because Congressional Democrats fought for you," said Congressman Garamendi, a key health care advisor to President Bill Clinton. "At a time when we should be focused on creating the jobs millions of Americans desperately need, today House Republicans voted to take away consumer protections from you, putting the insurance industry back in charge of your health care."

"Consumers gained a lot of protections in the Patient's Bill of Rights, and they have a lot to lose if House Republicans succeed in repealing health care reform. People in our communities – nearly 500,000 small business owners, seniors, working families, and young adults – would see vital and popular protections taken away," Congressman Garamendi said.